Contrition
by SF Ghost
Summary: Oneshot. After committing a robbery on Corneria, Wolf is reminded of his past on the planet, during which he was a completely different being. What drove Wolf to leave his gentle self behind and turn to a life of crime? Is he able to feel contrition?


**AUTHOR'S NOTES:** In a review left by **Ice Fox 111** for _"The Godfather"_, a newly published (and excellent) oneshot by **foxbird22**, Ice suggested that I should write a oneshot at some point in the future. I couldn't help but notice his words, as my thoughts flew to this little story, which I wrote a few months back. Originally, this was supposed to be my contribution to the "Star Fox: Under a Different Light"-anthology project, which was in the making a few months ago, but which died out suddenly. Hence, I was left with a short story with no Anthology to fit it into; I had been wondering for a while what to do with it when I saw Ice's suggestion, and it made up my mind, so... here it is!

This story is special in the particular aspect that the aforementioned Anthology had a theme: Portray any known (canon) Star Fox-character under a different light - that is, portray an aspect of them, which is totally unknown or in "opposition" to their characters as we know them from the games. So, I thought about the notorious Wolf O'Donnell and his rather psychopathic accomplice Leon, and decided upon an angle for my story: What if Wolf hadn't always been as cruel as we know him? What if he and Leon had once ben radically different people, utilizing their skills for a much more decent purpose than their own nefarious needs? And what drove them to a life of crime, in exile from the rest of the civilized Lylat? This story attempts to answer these questions... I'm sorry to those of you who expected this to be a new chapter of CtA, but enjoy nonetheless, even thought it's not my usual genre! Hope you all like it!

**Contrition**

By SF Ghost.

"_The question is the story itself, and whether or not it means something is not for the story to tell."_

– Paul Auster, "City of Glass".

With purple ionized exhaust spreading out from their high-powered G-Diffusers like multicoloured interlacing bands of pure energy, the three highly advanced Wolfen II fighter craft shot through Corneria's atmosphere, aglow and ablaze with the flames of friction. These sleek and pointy fighters, coloured a meshing hue of red and black so that they were easily concealed from prying eyes in the jet-black immensity of the void, housed three of the most wanted criminals of the Lylat System, and these notorious individuals were now escaping from the capital planet of Corneria with maximum velocity; an inference, which the men of the Cornerian Army had made a couple of minutes before as they arrived at the bank complex in central Corneria City, which the threesome had brutally robbed. As a result, a squadron of Arwings had been scrambled in order to intercept the three interlopers before they could escape to the anonymity of space and thus be out of the Army's reach. Closing in on the obscured Wolfens were ten highly trained Arwing-pilots, specialized in intercepting particularly designated craft. The white and glimmering Arwings started to close in on the Wolfens ever so slowly during their ascent through the atmosphere, their whitish hulls, sleek bodies and wings glimmering in the cinnabar rays of Solar, almost making them resemble metallic birds of prey.

As the three Wolfens formed an arrow formation and rose faster into the sky, allowing the light of Solar to gently illuminate their cockpits, one could clearly distinguish the pilots from one another. In the ship farthest to the left in the formation sat the perhaps most infamous chameleon in the entire Lylat System.

His long and green scaly face was as rigid as a mask. Not showing any signs of life whatsoever except for a curious jerk of the multifaceted eye every now and then, Leon Powalski intently concentrated on flying and evading the highly trained Cornerian interception troops. His sudden and irregular way of flying, combining small and concentrated manoeuvres with sudden boosts of speed, seemed to confuse the Cornerians enough for him to suddenly boost through their glimmering ranks and into the cold recesses of space in a dazzling display of speed and flying skills.

However strange it seemed, it was as if this fortuitous escape also aided his companions in their breaking away from the enemy, as it could be seen a few moments later when one of the other Wolfens made a break for it, aided greatly by his other two companions who pelted the Cornerian craft with distracting and singeing laser blasts from both sides of their ranks. This forced the Cornerian Arwings to hastily form up and thus forget everything about the second escapee, who veered around them with a contemptuous sneer lining his black-furred lips.

Naturally, this pilot was no other than Lylat's greatest and most deft charmer (or charlatan, depending on who you were): Panther Caroso. The jet-black panther was infamous for being a hardened criminal and a highly skilled pilot on the one hand, but on the other hand it was said that few female Lylatians could withstand the subtle charm within the golden orbs that were his eyes. As calm and rational as he seemed, this placid demeanour was just a front for a feverishly calculating mind; a mind which did not hesitate in the least if accomplishing an objective meant using lethal force. Panther Caroso was not an individual to be trifled with, just as the suave criminal had demonstrated today along with his allies during the robbery of the Cornerian bank.

Now having two of three members in the clear during their flight in the upper Cornerian stratosphere, Leon and Panther turned their attention towards distracting the rest of the Cornerian fighters, in order to give their friend and leader of the team enough time to escape with their loot from today's illegal act. Opening up with their ruby tinted lasers, the luminescent lances of energy hammered profoundly against the sturdy energy shields of the Arwings from every angle imaginable, since Leon and Panther remorselessly circled the Cornerian troops, pinning them down with constant laser fire. It seemed that this ultimate distraction of the Cornerian troops worked, for their otherwise so resilient formation and tenacious pursuing of the three Wolfen IIs was abruptly brought to an end by the incessant hail of ruby-red laser fire, which greeted them from Team Star Wolf's cannons. Trying desperately for some time to stand against the violent laser fire, the Cornerians ultimately realized that this force was too large and skilful for them to engage properly. In an almost indignant manner, the white, glimmering ships scattered and plotted a course back towards Corneria, allowing the last member of Team Star Wolf to join his comrades amidst the sparkling immensity of the incandescent stars.

The long and slender form, which occupied the third Wolfen-craft, emanated an almost tangible aura of charisma and leadership, even though he was just seen through the window in his cockpit. The most noticeable feature of the newly arrived pilot was a cybernetic implant over the left eye; an implant, which had replaced his earlier eye patch, giving him a wide range of visual optimizations, such as voluntary zoom on whoever or whatever he desired. His fur was coloured a shiny lustrous grey, complementing his pale blue eyes nicely… that is, the one which could still be seen for the eye-device. His face and muzzle were long and spare, giving him a most cunning look, along with radiating pure authority as well as an unbreakable iron will. He was the most wanted wolf and criminal in the entire Lylat System, in possession of a feared – and secretly admired – conniving intellect. The Cornerian Army had even gone so far in order to ensure his apprehension that they had put a bounty on his head.

"Well, team… how did it go?" the silvery-furred wolf asked his comrades calmly, wanting to know their opinion about the recently finished operation. Immediately, Panther bared his ivory teeth in a wry grin, the deadly fangs glimmering vaguely as he did so because of the white luminescence of the stars.

"Hmm… I must say it went quite satisfactory," he purred contently, "We didn't get arrested, we didn't get apprehended… In short, we've proved that we can easily avoid the Cornerians, should they come after us!" he finished his softly purred statement. Immediately, as he could see Panther running out of words, Leon took part in the conversation in order to appease their normally brusque and strict leader.

"I think our coup was quite well-done, Wolf!" the effervescent chameleon added, "At least now, we've got enough money to get those repairs to our HQ done! And what's best, we've dealt another devastating blow to those decadent Cornerians by relieving them of some of their wealth. They just got what they deserved!" he said happily. To his undeniable surprise, however, Wolf just heaved a deep sigh, looking down at the slowly rotating, blue-green spherical planet in front of them with a facial expression, which resembled a strange kind of sadness.

His pointed ears had drooped down to hang along the sides of his head, and his muzzle was contorted in a sour smile, almost as if he felt embarrassed or was sorry for someone or something. It was as if it were a form of mysterious longing, which had conquered his otherwise harsh facial features so abruptly as he looked at his former home, Corneria. Wolf had only enjoyed the luxury of living and working on Corneria for a brief period of his life; before he turned to a life of crime and vice… before he was exiled to the cold, starry recesses of space along with Leon all those years ago.

However, through his and Leon's work on the planet, they had both come to realize that many other people were in a far worse position in life than they would ever be. Through their work, he and Leon had felt sympathy for these lost souls, and had tried to rescue them by bringing them in and securing them within the confines of the organization that the lupine and the chameleon had been working for: They had been helping orphans in the streets to leading a better life by tracking them down via information, which their contacts in the city had given them, and then returning them to the care of their organization. The name of this benevolent organization was the Cornerian Orphanage Programme – or COP, in colloquial speech – and Wolf was not at all certain if it still existed after all these years.

With this expression of embarrassment clinging adamantly to his face, Wolf rotated the Wolfen sharply to face Leon's craft, "Well, maybe it went well quite technically, but don't you see the giant dent we've left in our own morality, Leon? Do you really think it's fair to steal from a planet, whose citizens aren't doing too well for themselves? Hell, you were there along with me; you've seen the poverty that rules in some of these streets! We tried to fix it, remember?" the silvery-furred wolf asked Leon gruffly, obviously displeased with the callous attitude of the chameleon.

Leon's face immediately assumed a very harsh and unforgiving expression, feeling consternation erupt within him because of the memories, which Wolf's words suddenly evoked within him. With a firm voice that did not quaver in the least, strengthened by audible determination, Leon addressed Wolf tensely, "Don't you dare to bring that up, Wolf. We weren't as experienced in life then as we've become now! What we did back then was a consequence of naivety, of stupidity! I don't want to think about it. The Cornerians only get what's coming to them when we claim our right of their massive wealth!" the chameleon spat disgustedly, eyeing Wolf with a scrutinizing expression in his yellow multifaceted irises.

Wolf O'Donnell, however, the famed leader of the Star Wolf Team, did not pay attention to his enraged reptilian comrade, nor did he pay attention as Panther began questioning Leon about the reason for his shocking outburst of ire. The thoughts of past events had already begun to flood his mind like a dense fog on the sea, obscuring all sight except for the immediate impulses. In his case, these immediate impulses were thoughts of his former life.

They were impulses from back then; when he actually did something good…

---

"Wolf O'Donnell! Time to get off your butt and get to work!" a beautiful young female collie said jokingly, as she walked briskly towards the luxurious black leather recliner in a corner of the room where Wolf was sitting, dressed in his usual black leather jacket, jeans and brown suede shoes, which fitted him perfectly and complemented his grey fur nicely. Furthermore, his ID-badge, which identified him as an associate of the COP, hung impeccably around his neck. He was visibly relaxing after returning to the headquarters of the COP from another tiring assignment.

"Yes, Alma? What is it?" Wolf enquired curiously with a smile, levelling his gaze expectantly at the collie before him as she approached his chair at a determined pace, a clipboard held firmly in one of her paws. She was dressed in the standard formal lime-green blazer that every COP-secretary seemed to wear; however, the clothing did not look as rigid on her as it did on most other people. In fact, Alma seemed to move quite freely in the otherwise rather stiff garment. Despite her brisk and business-like pace, Wolf could not help but silently admire her slender frame and her always well-kept white and brown fur, her tail swishing behind her as she gracefully moved towards him.

Apart from Alma's eye-opening presence, there was really nothing in the room, which could ever draw Wolf's eye out of interest. The quadratic main lounge of the COP was very austerely furnished, sporting only six recliners of leather around a well-polished basalt table, which seemed to fill up the space in the middle with its imposing, monolithic form. An orange lamp hung from the ceiling, casting a bright light at the white-grey surface of the table, making the stone look much older than it was by illuminating it with this sickly shade of orange, which was undoubtedly intended to spread comfort in the first place. One might imagine that such a progressive and thriving organization as the COP could afford more extravagant furniture and design, such as most of the other flourishing organizations in Corneria City had, but the design was a deliberate choice on the management's part. They wanted to show the orphans who arrived at the organization that life in the more thriving circles of society was not necessarily equal to automatically living life in luxury; it could be tolerated to live sparingly. This choice, however, did not appeal much to Wolf's aesthetic sense. He almost considered the quadratic room with its stony walls and slowly dying potted plants to be the equivalent of a fashionable prison.

As Wolf had been lost in his all-consuming thoughts about the sterile surroundings in the building, Alma had come to a stop in front of him and was now holding the clipboard out for him to take and to look at, "I'll tell you what it is, Wolf," she said slyly, humour glinting in her emerald eyes, "It's your new assignment. We've just received word from some of our contacts in the streets that another orphan has been spotted in the northern part of the slums. They've managed to take a picture of him for us to see, and luckily enough, he's quite well known by our informants. He's a nice kid, and he has never done anything to anybody."

While Alma concisely informed him about his coming job, Wolf scanned the paper on the clipboard meticulously, searching for any helpful information regarding this new case. The paper contained a photo of the subject in question; a young male tiger in his early teens, at least from what Wolf could make of the picture. His spare face almost seemed to radiate resilience towards whatever life might throw at him, and his striped fur with the characteristic mesh of black and orange stripes seemed oddly well-kempt, as if he still had an interest for not looking completely untidy; at least, Wolf had seen many orphaned Cornerians with a much more straggly fur. Below was written his name and some key information about him, undoubtedly by some of the informants who knew a bit about him.

His name was Carl, and apparently he had been living all by himself since his family had been wiped out two years ago, in a tragic accident involving a collision between their own hover-car and one driven by an intoxicated driver. Luckily, Carl had not been onboard, but had been informed about this occurrence by the authorities. However, filled up with grief and anger as he was, he had declined their offer of taking him to a centre like the COP and had run away instead, choosing to lead a lonely life instead of a life among other children, but without his true parents.

A footnote indicated that all this information was obtained through "a conversation with the subject", and as Wolf's eyes glimpsed that remark, he could not help letting the ghost of a smile cross his face. If it were so that Carl could actually be talked to and reasoned with, the probability that he would go back to the headquarters of the COP with Wolf was suddenly much greater than the lupine had dared hope. He was suddenly feeling quite enthusiastic about this new job when Alma's voice got through to him.

"Oh, and Wolf, there are a couple of things you need to know before you head out," she said sharply and continued upon seeing Wolf's attentive gaze fixated upon her, "Firstly, the northern part of the slums is infamous for its high crime rate, as you probably know. However, as you're also well aware since the government has announced it, associates of the COP have the authority to intervene, even forcefully, if a potentially harmful situation concerning their subjects should arise. In other words, if you find Carl in a dire situation when you arrive or when you're on your way back here, don't hesitate in the least to use any means necessary to protect him. Secondly, and this is where it gets interesting… you won't be going out there alone on this one. We've teamed you up with Powalski, just to keep you safe in those slums. I hope you don't mind!" Alma said apologetically, waiting for Wolf's response.

Alma knew that Wolf usually worked best when he worked alone, but quite contrary to what she had initially expected, it seemed that the lupine did not mind this impromptu partnership at all, for he just gave her a wry smile along with a shrug of indifference, before he elaborated on his relaxed demeanour, "Hey, I don't mind that at all! I've worked with that Powalski guy a couple of times before, and believe it or not, he's actually a pretty cool guy. At least, he's one of the few I get along with if I really have to be someone's partner!" he smiled. Actually, Wolf had met the effervescent chameleon Leon Powalski sometimes when he had been out on a job, and the two of them had in fact enjoyed one another's company a great deal, contrary to what Wolf normally thought of his fellow COP-workers. So this opportunity to get to know Leon even more was not one Wolf turned down on the spot.

Quickly reading over the clipboard one more time to completely familiarize himself with the specific details concerning his new assignment and subject, Wolf gave the papers back to Alma and left her with a friendly pat on the shoulder and an assurance that he, Leon and Carl would be perfectly fine out there, and that she did not have to worry. Sauntering slowly away from the lounge and through the depressingly featureless corridors, the grey lupine could not help but think about his course of action once he reached Carl. Would the young tiger go with him and Leon without question, or would he have to resort to slightly more persuasive means? Furthermore, would he and Leon be forced to intervene to save Carl from a possibly life-threatening situation when they arrived at his location? The slums were notorious for their high crime rate, after all, and it was more than probable that some of these ruthless criminals would have no qualms about robbing a homeless orphan of the small amount of valuables, which he did possess.

Wolf was so lost in the stray thoughts of his mind that he did not even pay attention where he was walking, until someone called out to him and broke his monotonous cycle of thought, "Hey, Wolf, I'm standing over here, man! You just walked right past me. Try and focus a bit, alright? You'll need it once we get out there!" a rather high-pitched voice said behind him, containing just a tinge of the characteristic hiss of a lizard.

Shaking his head to get rid of the cobwebs of contemplation, which had laid themselves upon his mind, Wolf turned around to greet the newcomer. By doing that, he quickly discovered that he had traversed the distance from the lounge to the exit of the COP-building, where he was now located. Seen from the outside, the COP-building was quite anonymous. Not bothering to lavishly decorate the facades with elaborate works of glass and steel, as was the case with most other buildings in Corneria City, the architects that designed the building had primarily focused on the anonymous and dull aspect for the same reason that the lounge was so plain: Namely to underline the fact that life in the more prosperous layers of society needed not be equivalent to automatically living in luxury.

The front double doors just consisted of thick layers of black, polished glass adorned with long brass handles, and it was one of these doors that the slim chameleon known as Leon Powalski was leaning against, calmly watching Wolf with his multifaceted eyes. Whenever Wolf looked at him, he always thought Leon to be a rather contrasting figure in terms of colour-composition, for his obsidian-black leather uniform did not harmonize at all with his natural colour, which was visible on his scaly visage: Vibrant green scales clashed against the total blackness of his suit, and as he laid his yellow eyes on Wolf, the chameleon could not help but contort his elongated and otherwise rigid or mask-like face with a wry grin

"You know, Wolf, you always look so shocked when you see me. What's the matter?" Leon joked, having noticed Wolf's strange stupor whenever he laid eyes on the way Leon was dressed. After a few moments, Wolf regained his lost composure by a quick shake of the head – like it always happened – and started excusing his momentary mental absence quickly.

"Nah, it's really nothing. It's just that I think you should get some clothes that compliment your scales more!" he grinned, but continued matter-of-factly upon seeing Leon's enquiring expression, "Anyway, that's not our primary concern right now. On the contrary, our primary concern is to get going and get Carl to this building. You've been briefed on it, too, haven't you?" the silvery-furred lupine asked.

In reply, Leon took out a small bundle of papers from one of the many pockets situated around the front of his jacket, "Yeah, I've got the mission briefing right here. Plus, I got a map along with the information about Carl. There was a mark on it, indicating where he was last seen in the slums. If we're lucky and we hurry, he might just still be there," the chameleon said slyly, waiting for Wolf's response.

However, instead of a fit of anger caused by the fact that Wolf for some strange reason had not gotten a map like that, Leon only received a curt nod from the lupine before he gruffly answered, "Alright, that'll do. Let's get moving, then. The sooner we get off our butts and get going, the bigger the chances are of finding him in that place. Let's move!" Wolf said determinedly, and the peculiar duo started walking down one of the crowded main streets of Corneria, consulting the map and waiting for a suitable alley which would lead them to the edge of the slum district. In this wealthy and technologically advanced core of Corneria City with its glimmering metallic constructs such as passing hovercars, and the unbelievably high skyscrapers, Wolf and Leon knew that they would not find anything near the poverty that reigned in the slums. They would have to traverse the narrow and seedy alleyways of Corneria to locate their subject in the slums.

At last, such an alley came up at their right side between two metal-coated houses, almost invisible in the rapidly increasing twilight that blanketed the city at this time. Opening up onto the main Cornerian highway like a tall and narrow maw, the dank and mouth-like entrance to the Cornerian alley did not look welcoming at all. Nonetheless, since this was their professional area of working, Wolf and Leon resolutely trotted down the street, glancing warily around themselves as they got farther into the lightless darkness of the alley, the obscurity being due to the fact that most of the lights here were smashed or simply short-circuited from such long time in service. As a result of the neglect, with which the Cornerian government considered its slums, the lights had swiftly fallen into a state of utter disrepair, leaving the nocturnal characters who called this part of town their home to thrive most excellently in the almost perpetual darkness.

As the silvery-furred wolf and the green-scaled chameleon advanced down the street, the pitiful state of disrepair was not only evident in the lights, but in the various buildings as well. Many apartment-complexes and factory storages reared up into the night-sky, which twinkled with stars, indicating natural beauty so far overhead that it almost seemed unreachable in this area of rancid filth and decay. The buildings were clearly only shadows of their former selves, ghostly constructs that had been neglected by maintenance and now stood as lifeless skeletons or fossils from a time long past, their normally gleaming windows smashed and destroyed, emanating an almost tangible eldritch aura of decay and misuse.

Leon seemed to shiver as these realizations struck him and instinctively looked to Wolf to see if he felt the same way. However, all that he received from Wolf was a questioning glance, which quickly prompted the chameleon to elaborate on his noticeable discomfort, "You know", he began, "I'm just thinking… whenever I see the slums, I can't help but wonder if they'll spread. If the government doesn't do anything about it and just concentrates on maintaining the wealthy city centre, then the rest of this city won't last for long before it also ends up like this place," he said anxiously, but then shook his head as if to deny his own musings, "Nah, I don't really know what to think. I'm just rambling. How about you?" he asked, looking at Wolf with an enquiring expression on his face.

As much as Wolf hated to admit it, what Leon said was the brutal truth. The apparent wealth of Corneria was but a devious simulacrum if the Cornerian government did not spend its resources more wisely, instead of solely concentrating on maintaining the state-of-the-art living quarters and research facilities in the centre of town. Sometimes, he wondered, perhaps the government officials needed the populace to show them that their course of action was disastrous in the long run; but to better emphasize that point to the obstinate politicians in the government, Wolf had thought that it must necessarily require an act of unprecedented force, such as actively stealing some money from the government in a daring raid, just for the populace to prove its point.

Somewhat hesitantly, the silvery-furred wolf opened his mouth to answer the chameleon and indulge him in his worries, but before he could utter a single word, he was interrupted by a blood-curdling high-pitched scream; a shrill note of fear which reverberated between the narrow walls of the alley and echoed through the interlacing network of surrounding alleyways.

"Hey, did you hear that?" Leon asked Wolf quickly, and continued upon seeing the wolf's affirmative nod, "It sounded like it came from up ahead, pretty close by. If someone's in need not far from here, we've got to help them. Let's go!" he said determinedly, and the next thing he knew, he and Wolf were sprinting hectically through the narrow passageways of the Cornerian slums, walls rushing past them in a blur as the two COP-workers stormed through the twilight-covered architectural maze, trying to locate the source of the scream.

It did not take long for them to find this very source. As they had turned some corners, guided by the scream which sounded some more times at intermittent intervals, Wolf and Leon finally turned around a corner and found themselves staring down a dead end. However, that advantageous position made them instantly aware of what was transpiring in this narrow alley.

With his back pressed against the wall in a desperate frozen posture of fright, Carl – Wolf and Leon's subject among the orphans – stood helpless and cowering in the face of certain danger. As Wolf laid eyes upon the young tiger, he was exactly as he had seen him on the picture: The gaunt striped face, the grey and featureless rags that he used for clothes, the thin and yet muscular frame all fitted with the impression of him that the silvery-furred wolf had gotten from the picture. Normally, Wolf believed that Carl would look quite defiantly at anyone who approached him in his desolate misery, but at this particular moment, this very defiance was gone, replaced by an easily visible fear.

The certain danger that threatened him was more visibly embodied in the skinny male racoon, who loomed menacingly over the young tiger, a smirk clinging to his elongated face. His black leather coat and his white and black-striped fur made him blend with the shadowy surroundings easily if one did not know he was there. In one of his hands, which were protected by leather gloves, he held a long, sharp knife with an unusually shiny blade that sparkled faintly in the weak light, which shone in the alleyway.

As soon as he saw this scenario in progress, Wolf knew that it would undoubtedly be considered prudent to do something quickly; however, before he even had time to conceive a reasonable plan in a couple of heartbeats, Leon had already addressed the knife-wielding racoon, "Hey, you there, in the leather jacket! Just what do you think you're doing? Step away from that tiger, and do it slowly. We don't want trouble here. We come from the Cornerian Orphanage Programme, and we have instructions to take this individual with us back to our headquarters," he said sharply and determinedly, slowing his voice down at the end of his request for the criminal to cease his efforts. However, the racoon merely glanced back over his shoulder and smiled, sending Leon a toothy grin.

"And why would I do that just because you ask me to, scale-face?" he spat, eyeing Leon with undisguised contempt, "You just shut your big mouth, or someone other than this little kid might get hurt!" he threatened, focusing his attention on Carl yet again. It seemed that the racoon had barely noticed Wolf at all, since he was still standing in the deep shadows in the beginning of the alleyway with his black coat effectively granting him extra concealment, and because of this, the silvery-furred wolf saw his chance. As he began creeping along the right wall of the alley ever so slowly and silently, in the hope of reaching the criminal on his right side and wrest the knife from him, Wolf discreetly made a hand-sign to Leon which mimicked a mouth talking, and nodded his head in the direction of the racoon.

Leon understood immediately. What Wolf's gesture had meant was: Keep talking and get him to focus his attention on you. Taking care not to let his gaze wander to Wolf and thus compromise his position along the wall as he went, the green-scaled chameleon called out to the racoon once again. The criminal was intently focused on deciding what to do with Carl, it seemed, but still, he was forced to divert his gaze to Leon as the chameleon addressed him with a shout, "Hey, just look at me for a second, okay?"

"What do you want now, scale-face?" the racoon sneered – apparently, he was growing quite fond of this insult, "Can't you see I'm busy here? If you don't shut your mouth right now, I'm going to personally pry every last one of those scales from your face after I'm done here!" he emphasized menacingly, waving his knife a bit back and forth to prove his point. Using his peripheral vision as he kept his gaze locked on the criminal, Leon spotted Wolf who was creeping slowly along the wall, blending perfectly into the shadows and not making any noise at all. And then, when the racoon turned his attention back to Carl, the moment came.

Wolf had finally sneaked up on the criminal and now stood flattened against the grey-black wall, his fur and clothes offering him perfect camouflage and concealment for this crucial strike. Only if one squinted one's eyes and looked intently at the wall would one be able to make out the blurred outline of Wolf O'Donnell standing there, and as the racoon turned back to Carl to do whatever wicked deed he had in mind, the silvery-furred wolf chose this particular moment to expose himself and disrupt his efficient camouflage.

With a forceful leap, Wolf propelled himself from the shadows like a striking ghost, ramming himself into the right side of the criminal with a dull _thud_ and the squishing sound of tendons being crushed. The racoon let out a terrified, pained yelp and fell to the ground with Wolf on top of him. While falling, Wolf had made sure to pin his foe down with both his arms and legs, which meant that as they were lying on the ground, the criminal had no chance of escaping the silvery-furred wolf's effective grapple, no matter how much he struggled and squirmed to break free. Amused at the pathetic sight, Wolf smirked a little and loosened his iron grip.

However, as the racoon saw this contemptuous smirk, he was only more enraged in his attempts at breaking free. With a furious snarl, he brought his knife – which he had still been able to hold on to in his right hand despite his being tackled – up against Wolf's left temple in a flash of shining steel. Wolf, being the experienced melee-fighter that he was due to his practice of martial arts on a regular basis, anticipated the attack and swiftly countered it with a quick chop to the racoon's wrist, sending the knife flying down the alley along with making the criminal holler in pain, before Wolf knocked him out cold with his own quick and powerful punch to his opponent's temple. Wolf's silvery-furred fist collided with the racoon's head with a soft _thump_, and the racoon drew in a short, gasping breath before passing out, as limp and inactive as if he were dead.

Seeing that the dramatic spectacle had come to an abrupt end, Leon carefully walked through the darkened and narrow alley, finally approaching the panting Wolf, the cowering Carl and the unconscious criminal. His scaly face assumed an enquiring expression as he laid eyes on Wolf, silently asking him what should be done now.

"Call the police," Wolf responded, still exhausted from his short fight with the racoon, "Tell them we've had an incident while we were trying to escort an orphan back to the COP-headquarters. Oh, and don't forget to tell them that we work for the COP. Then I think they'll understand what we had to do to that racoon. The man was standing in front of Carl with a knife, so I pretty much considered it a matter of life and death, or – at the very least – a possibly life-threatening situation. Yeah, you can tell the police that Wolf O'Donnell from the Cornerian Orphanage Programme said that," he stated, and – after seeing Leon's affirmative nod – turned around to face Carl.

The young tiger was still standing with his back to the wall, cowering slightly with fright, but his posture had now become one more of wonder than fright. With eyes wide with bewilderment, he looked at the unconscious racoon, and after dwelling at that sight for a few moments, he raised his gaze to met Wolf's eyes. The silvery-furred wolf in the black leather jacket had stepped over to him, and now held his COP-badge – the one that hung around is neck – out for Carl to see.

"Hey there, Carl. Pleased to meet you!" Wolf said merrily and extended his hand with a broad smile lining his lips. This sudden gesture forced the young tiger to recoil in horror, pressing himself even more against the wall, staring at Wolf with wide uncomprehending eyes. Upon realizing the rashness of his gesture, Wolf withdrew his hand and shook his head gently with a wry smile on his face, silently admonishing himself for his rashness.

"Yeah, I know how you feel. All of this must seem quite strange to you as of now… and how do I even know your name, you may ask yourself. Well, Carl, let me tell you: My name's Wolf O'Donnell, and that", he said as he gestured towards Leon who was talking into a transportable comlink some distance away, "is my friend Leon Powalski. We're both from an organization called the Cornerian Orphanage Programme, or COP, and it's our responsibility to ensure that all of the orphans who are living in serious poverty in the streets of Corneria are given the chance to start over on a new life. While we were in our headquarters, we were informed that you lived somewhere around here, and we immediately went out here to look for you. And lo and behold, we found you, albeit in the company of a rather creepy guy. Who was he, anyway?" Wolf asked Carl, who – seeing as the wolf had just confessed to him that he bore no evil intends – merely shrugged and replied as best he could.

"I don't know; some thief or something. I swear, if you guys hadn't shown up, he would've robbed me, that's for sure. Thank you very much!" Carl mumbled shyly, his eyes downcast with shame, before he finally summoned the strength to ask the newly arrived persons a question, which they had been dying to hear. Raising his head, so that his gaze was fixated on Wolf again, the young tiger started to speak just as Leon terminated the transmission with the Cornerian police, "Is it true? Can you really take me in and make me start over again? Ever since I chose to flee from the police when my parents died in an accident and they came to take me in, I've regretted that decision ever since. If I can, I'd… I'd really like to come with you!" he said thankfully, the spark of hope igniting itself once again in his eyes.

Leon, who had previously only been watching, now chose to voice his opinion on the matter cheerily, "Hey, no problem! That's precisely what we're here for. Of course you can come with us; that's the whole point of our coming here. Just follow Wolf and me, and we'll show you right back to our headquarters where people will be ready to receive you," he said effervescently, eliciting a relieved and happy smile from Carl, who began trotting along, prompted by another kind smile from Wolf who went beside him as the threesome made their way through the dark and sinister industrialized architectural maze of the slums.

However, as he went, Wolf could not quite shake the thought of the populace needing to prove to the Cornerians that their current wealth was not eternal. He remembered the discussion he had had with Leon as the two had just entered the slums, and he silently agreed in his mind that the only way to possibly make the government understand its own stupidity and obstinacy was to revolt by stealing some of their massive economic strength. An endeavour, which he himself would not hesitate to undertake, should the opportunity present itself some time in the future. For now, his concern lay with Carl and the orphans, but you never knew when such an opportunity might arise, Wolf conceded as they exited the slums…

---

Hanging in his Wolfen II in the darkness of the void above Corneria, only briefly illuminated by the pure fires of the stars, Wolf replayed this concatenation of events within his head in what seemed like a rapidly passing interval of time. Ignoring Leon and Panther's continuous bickering over the comlink, Wolf mulled these thoughts of his past life around in his head, trying to estimate if it had been a wrong decision for him to take up a career as a criminal and rebel, now that he had enjoyed his past life so much. However, as he thought of the obstinacy of the Cornerian government and their single-minded aristocratic focus on the planet, Wolf's mind reached only one feasible conclusion, which seemed to be the universal answer to every new question of doubt that had arisen since the film about his past had started playing in his head, _"That was then, and this is now."_

With this short and concise mantra resounding in his head, the silvery-furred wolf suddenly and determinedly interrupted the unconstructive bickering between Leon and Panther on the comlink-channel, "Alright, Leon, Panther, listen up! I just lost myself in thought there, and I'm sorry for that, but I've also just realized that what we do is the right thing to be doing against those snobbish Cornerians! It's the only way to teach them that not everything they do is right, and that there will always be someone there to make them remember that. And that someone is in this case… us! Star Wolf. We succeeded in robbing them today, and I'll be damned if we won't try again tomorrow!" he grinned confidently, eliciting loud cheers from Leon and Panther, before giving his final order, "Star Wolf, let's move out!"

The engines of the Wolfen II's began to power up, the ships began to vibrate… and then, in a flash of purple and green G-Diffuser exhaust, they were gone into the anonymity of hyperspace, leaving only the silent stars as witnesses to this intermezzo of doubt above Corneria.

_**The end.**_


End file.
